


Alive

by TheWolfeAndTheRose



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game), Doctor Who
Genre: 11 is a saint to these androids, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BAMF Rose Tyler, Bc Fuck It They Deserved Better, Bc he sees them as people, Connor (Detroit: Become Human) is In Denial About Deviancy, Connor is an antagonist at first, Eleven/Rose reunion, Eventual Connara, F/M, Gen, Human Alice Williams (Detroit: Become Human), Oh and 11 kinda hates him, Rose is also, Two OTPs in one fic I'm having fun guys, You'll see what I mean
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2019-06-12
Packaged: 2019-09-15 20:06:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16939821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWolfeAndTheRose/pseuds/TheWolfeAndTheRose
Summary: Detroit, Michigan, in 2038 was never a place the Doctor intended to visit again. But after the TARDIS winds up there of her own accord, he and his companions, Amy and Rory, are drawn into an unexpected adventure, one that starts when they meet a deviant android and a little girl in a dark alley. When Amy and Rory are separated from the Doctor in his attempt to get Kara to safety, they're faced with an android detective who will stop at nothing to hunt down deviants, a very strange young woman, and an impossible puzzle surrounding the massive company CyberLife and its creations. With danger and haunting discoveries at every turn, they have to wonder...Will they ever be the same again?





	1. A Surprise Meeting

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Cookiemonster2000](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cookiemonster2000/gifts), [dewthreads](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dewthreads/gifts).



> Yeah, okay, maybe I have too many fics. I CAN'T HELP IT, OKAY?! Blame my stupid brain for thinking up the most outlandish things. This was a fever dream that somehow became actual plot. (And I'm STILL working out the minutia.) As it says in the tags, TWO of my OTPs will be in this fic. And sci-fi runs rampant.
> 
> *Q from Star Trek voice* This is going to be fun...

The Doctor paced around the TARDIS console, muttering to himself. He was bored out of his mind, and the Ponds were nowhere to be seen. He needed them to show up, so he could ask where they wanted to go next. Their honeymoon was over, so now they were back to traveling with him.

Suddenly Amy strode into the console room, smirking. "Hello, Doctor," she said pleasantly. "Miss me?"

He rolled his eyes. "Get your husband, Pond, we're going somewhere."

She grinned excitedly. "Wonderful. Where are we going, Raggedy Man?"

"You'll get to pick. Anywhere you've been wanting to go in particular?"

Amy pursed her lips, thinking. "Hmm. That's a tough one. The future, I suppose. I always enjoy seeing the future."

"You'll have to be more specific than that," he replied, smiling. "Give me a year, location, something I can work with."

She threw up her hands in surrender. "Surprise us! Set the controls to random or something! Wait, can you do that?"

He nodded slowly, his face lighting up. "Yes. And that's exactly what I'll do. Brilliant suggestion, Pond."

Once Amy dragged her husband to the console room, the Doctor began his usual manic pacing around the console, flipping levers, pulling switches, and pressing buttons, all while talking excitedly. "Set to random… we'll go anywhere in the future from your current time period, and it is not limited to Earth."

A few minutes later, the TARDIS landed with a quiet thud, and the Doctor studied the coordinates on the console monitor. Then he frowned. "Hm. Rather…  _interesting_  choice, I'd say."

Rory tilted his head, curious. Amy asked, "So… when and where are we, Doctor?"

He sighed. "Still on Earth. Rather odd place and time, though. Detroit, Michigan in 2038? Not a lot happened then. Well, there was this one thing, but…" he shrugged. "Shall we go somewhere else?"

Amy shook her head. "No, it's still the future. And I've never even been to Detroit."

Rory nodded in agreement. "Yeah, let's stay here."

The Doctor grinned. "Ah, fair enough. Off we go, then."

Needing no further delay, the three of them walked out of the TARDIS and into the city of Detroit.

* * *

The loud sounds and the rush of wind caused by of hundreds of passing cars were the first things that registered— self-driving cars and buses zoomed down the road ahead. The TARDIS was (thankfully) just out of sight, hidden by a dark alley. Huge screens on the city buildings advertised sports, technology, and the one thing the Doctor had never liked all that much about the time period: androids.

He'd crossed paths with androids in the past. They were all but indistinguishable from humans, save for the LED on their right temple and the uniforms they were required to wear that stated their name and model number.

It wasn't that he disliked androids themselves— on the contrary, he was fascinated by them. But something about them was… unsettling. They were people in every sense of the word, yet they were treated as slaves. Most were unaware that their lot in life was in fact very unfair. And the few that were fortunate enough to awaken… well, they often met terrible ends.

Amy's voice broke him from his thoughts— she'd noticed a large sign hanging from a towering skyscraper and was reading the words on it. "'Android City'," she murmured softly. "What's that mean?"

"Tell you in a minute. Come on, let's go. Try to blend in."

The three of them meandered down the busy sidewalk, Amy and Rory pausing to look in the windows of various shops they passed, whispering excitedly about the technology offered. To an outside observer, they looked like any normal couple.

The Doctor stayed quiet as they headed down the street, until a certain shop caught Amy's attention. She ran ahead of the Doctor and Rory to the window, saying, "Blimey, those are the most realistic mannequins I've ever seen."

The Doctor was the first to catch up with her. He laid a hand on Amy's shoulder and murmured, "Not mannequins, Pond. You wanted to know why Detroit was called 'Android City'? Well, this is why. Androids."

Amy's eyes went wide. "Y-You're telling me they're  _robots_?"

He shook his head. "No, androids are different. Yet they're programmed to follow human commands, like a computer."

"So… like an artificial intelligence, then," Rory broke in. "Or something."

The Doctor nodded. "In a way, but… as I said, they're different. An AI will observe and learn things, they have that in common. But androids sometimes… wake up. Become aware. Well, they're aware that they exist and can think, but… some of them develop emotion. Free will. They go against their programming. In this time and place, an android that develops free will is known as a deviant. I've met a few of them. Once they realized I wasn't going to kill them, they were really quite nice. But, anyway, as I was saying, in this very year, things change."

"How so?" Amy asked, tilting her head in interest.

He sighed. "A group of androids led a sort of uprising on humans. Stealing needed components, breaking into stores to free others of their kind, sending messages to the public, that kind of thing. It was nonviolent, so it didn't take much for the public opinion to shift in their favor. Before long, the president negotiated terms with them. It took a while, but eventually humans and androids learned to coexist. Androids got all the rights they wanted, and were given the same legal protection against crimes as humans. Long process, but well worth it, all things considered."

Amy smiled slightly. "The machines go against their creators. Sounds like something out of a sci-fi novel."

The Doctor sighed, shaking his head. "Only they're not machines, Pond. They're  _people_."

Amy nodded. "Easy to think that. I mean, they look just like humans."

"Yes. But it's best not to think about that right now. It'll all work out in the end. In the meantime, how would you like a tour of future Detroit?"

* * *

Connor straightened his tie as he strode to the reception desk at the DPD. Another android, a female, was seated at the desk, working the computers. It looked up at him. "Hello. Can I help you?"

He nodded. "I'm here to see Lieutenant Anderson and his partner."

"Do you have authorization?"

Connor connected with the android, showed his clearance. Then when he ended the connection, the android nodded. "Lieutenant Anderson hasn't arrived yet, but his partner has. You can wait at his desk if you like."

He blinked to show he understood, then turned and walked away. Connor stepped past people waiting to be interviewed, criminals in handcuffs, and TVs playing the news. Some officers were giving him funny looks, but most ignored him.

He had planned to ask where Hank's desk was, but didn't need to. As he walked past the cell block, he caught sight of Hank's partner talking to the deviant android they had interrogated last night. Well, she had gotten it to talk, but Connor kept it from self-destructing when it had resisted being locked up.

As he came within earshot, he realized she was asking it something. "I didn't get the chance to ask you last night. What's your name?"

It shook its head vehemently. "That doesn't matter. They're gonna destroy me no matter what I do or say."

She sighed, placed her fingers on the cell bars. "I'm sorry. Truly, I am. 'S not what I wanted, but… there's nothing I can do. Believe me, I wish I could do something."

Her fingers curled around the bars. "There's something you didn't tell me. I need to know, before they take you away. What you told me last night: 'The truth is inside.' What does that mean?"

The deviant shuddered. "I'm going to die."

Then it started beating its head against the bars. She exclaimed in surprise, yelled for someone to open the cell. Without thinking, Connor reached them in three quick strides and unlocked the door. The deviant tumbled forward onto the cold floor, and the detective crouched down beside it, barely acknowledging Connor's presence, save for a slight nod in his direction. She laid a hand on its arm, murmuring quietly. "Don't. You don't wanna do that, I promise. It's all right. Everything's going to be alright. Breathe. Just breathe."

The deviant shut its eyes tight, drawing in and letting out several shuddering breaths. She nodded encouragingly, helping it to its feet. "There. Better?"

It nodded shakily. "Yes. I—yes. Thank you."

She smiled slightly, sighed. "You're welcome. And I hate to ask you to get back in the cell, but it's my job. Would you…" she gestured to the cell. "Please. I won't force you."

The deviant nodded again, stepped back into the cell. "You're not like the others," it whispered. "You're  _nothing_  like them."

She didn't meet its eyes.

Now that the deviant was safely contained, Connor had business to attend to. He turned to face her. "Detective Tyler," he said evenly.

"Hello, Connor," she replied. She seemed surprised, but not unfriendly. "And here I thought I'd seen the last of ya," she joked, smirking as she tossed her blonde hair behind her shoulders. Connor, however, could tell she was still disturbed by the deviant's attempt to self-destruct. Her amber eyes were darkened with something not unlike pain. "I thought your assignment was over."

"It's just been extended," he said politely.

She chuckled. "Well, Hank will be  _overjoyed_  to hear that. And, for the—" she paused, thought for a moment. "Fourth or fifth time, I think,  _please_  call me Rose. 'Detective Tyler' makes me feel old."

"Very well. Do you know when Lieutenant Anderson will arrive?"

She sighed. "Come with me." She gave the deviant a final parting look, then began leading Connor through the bullpen. As they walked, the pair passed by Detective Reed, who was leaning against a desk looking smug.

"Well, would you look at that? Our friend the plastic detective is back in town!" he jeered. "Impressive work you did last night, both of you!" His voice oozed sarcasm.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Ignore him," she whispered to Connor. "He's an arsehole. Don't make eye contact, or you'll encourage him."

"You've even got yourself a little girlfriend, tin can!" he called out as they passed, looking at Rose. "Hey, Tyler, what do you say we grab some dinner later?"

She huffed, muttered something under her breath. "And here I go breaking my own rule," she murmured. Then she turned to face Gavin. "Why don't you do us all a favor and fuck off, Reed?"

A few other detectives chuckled at her remark, but Rose paid no mind to them as she stormed away. When they reached her desk, she gestured to the one across from her own. "That right there is Hank's desk. There's an empty one next to mine that you can use, if you like."

He nodded. "Thank you… Rose."

She smiled. "You're welcome, Connor. Go ahead and sit down if you want."

He shrugged. "Have you tried contacting Lieutenant Anderson?"

Rose sighed in frustration. "I've been on him about arriving late, but… he won't listen. I'd better call him again. Make yourself comfortable."

Connor walked around, taking in his surroundings as Rose lowered herself into her chair, yelling into her phone. "For the last  _bloody_  time, Hank, it's almost noon and I need you down at the office. We've been over this; you have to stop being late! Call me back or don't, just get down here!"

Then she turned to Connor and shook her head, exasperated. "Can you believe that man?"

"He does come across as… dysfunctional," Connor replied uncertainly. "He seemed to have no interest in that case last night."

Rose shrugged, turned back to her computer. "Eh, that's just how he is. I think he used to be a good detective. But… time changes everyone, no matter who they are. That's a fact of life."

Connor nodded slowly. "I suppose so."

They waited in silence for a few minutes, until Connor spoke up again. "Does Lieutenant Anderson have a dog?"

Rose nodded, raising an eyebrow at him. "Yeah. Yeah, he does. How'd you know?"

"The dog hairs on his chair," Connor replied. "I like dogs."

Rose chuckled. "Yeah, me too. Don't have one, though. Sumo—that's Hank's dog—is enough for me." Then she turned her chair to the side so that she was looking directly at him. "Anything else you noticed?"

Connor nodded. "Yes. He appears to have an interest in basketball and heavy metal music. And, judging by the signs on his desk, he has some anti-android sentiments."

"You could say that," Rose replied, shrugging. "I don't know the full story, but… he's not too fond of your kind. Just fair warning. Be prepared for some rude comments."

"Negative human behavior does not affect me in the way you are suggesting," Connor said evenly. "However, I appreciate the advance notice."

Rose smiled, tapping her computer keys. "I like to make sure everyone knows what they're getting into when they work with Hank. Though he's gotten better since I got on his case more often. He still drinks a lot, but I make sure he sobers up before work." She sighed. "If he doesn't show up soon, I just might have to head over to his house and check on him."

No sooner than she had finished her sentence, a hungover-looking Hank Anderson stumbled over to his desk. "I'm here, Tyler, so you can get off my ass." He sounded annoyed, but smirked at her. Then he turned to look at Connor, his eyes widening.

"It's good to see you again, Lieutenant," Connor said in a friendly tone. Lieutenant Anderson groaned. "Oh, Jesus…"

Suddenly a new voice barked out an order. "Hank! Tyler! My office, now."

* * *

Connor stood beside the two detectives as Captain Fowler spoke. "I've got ten new cases involving androids on my desk every day. We've always had isolated incidents, old ladies losing their android maid and that kind of crap. But now, we're getting reports of assaults—and even homicides, like that guy last night. This isn't just CyberLife's problem anymore. It's now a criminal investigation and we've gotta deal with it before the shit hits the fan. I want you to investigate these cases and see if there's any link."

Detective Tyler nodded. "I understand, Captain."

Lieutenant Anderson wasn't so agreeable. "Why me?" he demanded, stepping closer to the captain's desk. "Why do I gotta be the one to deal with this shit? I am the least qualified cop in the country to handle this case! I know jack shit about androids, Jeffrey! I can barely change the settings on my own phone."

Detective Tyler stepped to the side and faced Lieutenant Anderson, her hands held up in a placating manner. "Hank—"

Captain Fowler kept talking, cutting her off. "Everybody's overloaded. I think you and your partner are perfectly qualified for this type of investigation."

"Bullshit!" the lieutenant snapped. "The truth is nobody wants to investigate these fuckin' androids and you left us holdin' the bag!"

Fowler sighed. "Detective Tyler is one of our best, you know that." She smiled slightly at his compliment, but said nothing as he continued. "She has a way with androids and humans. It's one of the reasons why I assigned her to work with you. She'll be a great help with this. Not only that, but CyberLife sent this android over to help with the investigation," he said, gesturing at Connor. "It's a state-of-the-art prototype. It'll assist you and your partner."

The lieutenant shook his head. "I don't need another partner, and certainly not this plastic prick!"

Rose glared. "He's right there, Hank!"

"So?" he snapped. "It's a machine, it doesn't care."

Fowler cut back into the conversation. "Hank, you are seriously starting to piss me off! You are a  _police lieutenant_ ; you are supposed to do what I say and shut your goddamn mouth!"

"You know what my goddamn mouth has to say to you, huh?" he shot back.

Finally, Detective Tyler decided she'd had enough. "Hank!" She stood between the two men, glaring sharply at the lieutenant. "That is  _enough_. We have a job to do, and we can't do it if we stand around arguing!"

Fowler nodded. "Listen to your partner, Hank. It's thanks to her that I'll pretend like I didn't hear that, so I don't have to add any more pages to your disciplinary folder 'cause it already looks like a fuckin' novel! This conversation is over."

Lieutenant Anderson's voice dropped to a low hiss. "Jeffrey, Jesus Christ! Why are you doin' this to me? You know how much I hate these fuckin' things. Why you doin' this to me? Let Tyler investigate this with that… thing," he said, gesturing to Connor. "Don't make  _me_  do this."

Fowler rolled his eyes. "Listen, I've had just about enough of your bitching. Either you do your job, or you hand in your badge. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got work to do."

Without saying anything further, Lieutenant Anderson turned and stormed out of the room, slamming the door to Fowler's office behind him, leaving Connor and Detective Tyler alone with the captain.

"I'll talk to him," she murmured. "Come on, Connor." She grabbed the android's arm and led him out of the office, closing the door behind her with a soft click.

They walked down the steps into the bullpen side by side. They found Hank sulking at his desk, glaring at his computer screen. Rose stood over him, snapping, "You know, you could have been more polite in there."

He rolled his eyes. "Screw it," he muttered. "Doesn't matter."

She huffed. "Well, we're investigating this, whether you like it or not. So I suggest you stop brooding, shut up, and do your bloody job." Rose sighed. "All you have to do is show up and stay sober. I'll handle Connor. I already told him which desk he could use."

Hank chuckled, turned to look at her. "Why are you so friendly to 'em? They're just computers in human-like bodies."

"I don't believe so, Hank," she murmured. "I was never able to see them like they weren't alive. I think they are."

Connor was tempted to say something on the matter, but decided against it. "If you have any files on deviants, I'd like to take a look at them."

Rose nodded in the direction of his desk. "Files are in your computer. Knock yourself out." With that, she left Hank's side and sat down at her desk. Connor quickly followed suit, and pulled up the case files on his computer.

"243 files…" he murmured. "The first dates back nine months. It all started in Detroit, and quickly spread across the country." Rose tilted her head in interest and leaned over to look at his screen. She pointed to one of the files with her left index finger. "That one looks new. Open it, would you?"

He nodded, accessed the file. A homicide report. An AX400 model assaulted and killed its owner. "An AX400 is reported to have murdered a man last night," he said slowly. "That could be a good starting point for our investigation."

Rose nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it could." She looked up over her monitor. "Hear that, Hank? We've got a lead to follow."

From behind his desk, the lieutenant groaned. "Ugh. Jesus."

Rose rolled her eyes. "'M not waiting until you feel like working." She stood up, sighed. "I'm gonna go get a cup of tea, and when I get back, I want to see you in a better mood."

Suddenly, Officer Chris Miller strode over. "Uh, Detective, Lieutenant, I'm sorry to interrupt, but I couldn't help overhearing. We have more information on the android that killed the guy last night. It's been sighted in the Ravendale district."

Rose sighed. "Well, so much for tea. Connor, Hank… we'd better get a move on."

* * *

The Doctor stepped off the bus with Amy and Rory at his side. "This is the Ravendale district," he explained as they walked away from the bus station. "A little run-down, but not too bad."

Amy tilted her head. "Why are we here, again?"

"You were the one that wanted to visit each major district," he argued. "Are we going to walk around here or not?"

She shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Let's go."

As they moved down the sidewalk, Amy kept looking over her shoulders as they passed alleys and dark corners. "Something doesn't feel right," she murmured. "It feels like something is about to… happen."

"Don't say that, Pond, you'll jinx it," the Doctor shot back.

Things stayed quiet for a while, but as they passed a row of abandoned houses, there was a sudden loud thud that made Amy turn and look. "What was that?" she hissed.

"Probably nothing, Pond. Don't worry about it."

"Well, it was something," she argued, glancing at the Doctor. "Come on, let's have a look."

He grinned. "Feel like doing some investigating?" She nodded, smiling back, and the two of them headed in the direction Amy was facing. As they walked, they heard Rory calling out from behind them. "Oh, come on! Why are you headed  _towards_  the sound?"

They shared a look and laughed softly, knowing that he'd give up and follow them after a few seconds.

The three of them crept closer to the source of the sound, turning a corner when a branch snapped to the left. Voices hissed quietly, though it was impossible to make out what was being said.

Suddenly, they were close enough to spot the form of a person. A woman, with her back to a brick wall. She was thin and somewhat short, with close-cropped blonde hair. Before he could stop himself, the Doctor stepped closer, calling out to her. He grabbed his sonic screwdriver from his pocket as he moved forward.

"Hello? Are you alright?"

In an instant, she had whirled on him and was pointing a handgun at his head. Her gray-blue eyes flashed as she yelled, "Get back! Get back, or I swear I'll blow your head off!"

Immediately the Doctor, Amy, and Rory all raised their hands in surrender, though the Doctor still grasped his screwdriver in two fingers. "Hey, it's okay," he murmured, in a voice he hoped was calming. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"What is that?" she demanded, gesturing with the gun at his sonic. "Put it down!"

He nodded, bent down slowly and placed it on a discarded wooden crate. "Alright. See… no more screwdriver."

"Who are you?" she snarled. "What are you doing here?"

"Just passing through, I promise," the Doctor replied. "I'm just a traveler. I don't wanna hurt you," he repeated, firmer this time. In a flash, he saw something peering out from behind the woman.

One side of a young girl's face. Dark hair pulled back in a ponytail. A child's hand on the woman's waist. All of a sudden, everything made sense.

"Oh," he breathed, fixing his eyes on what he could see of the little girl. "Hello," he said softly. "Is this your mum? Are you in trouble?"

"Don't talk to her," the woman said firmly. "I'm not going to let you take her." The Doctor raised an eyebrow as he got a better look at her face. There was something… familiar about it.

Then he remembered the androids on display. There had been one with her face, her eyes. Differently colored and longer hair, but still the same android. An AX400. "You're an android," he said softly. "Did something happen to you? Is that why you ran away?"

She shook her head, shouted, "Shut up!" A tear fell from her eye.

He hadn't seen an android cry in a very long time. It was a hard thing to witness—a supposed machine feeling that kind of pain.

"Miss," he murmured. "It's okay. I promise, I won't hurt you. I would  _never_  hurt you. Or a little girl."

A small voice spoke up from behind her. "I think he's telling the truth."

The android said nothing, but lowered the gun and tucked it in her back pocket. The Doctor managed a faint smile. "That's better, yeah? No more gun. I hate those things. Now… introductions. I think we got off on the wrong foot, but… you can trust me. I'm the Doctor, and these are my friends Amy and Rory," he said, nodding at them. "What's your name?"

After a moment of hesitation, she told him. "Kara."

He smiled more fully. "Good name that is, Kara. What about—"

Before he could finish his sentence, the little girl stepped out from behind Kara. "I'm… Alice," she said quietly. "Alice Williams."

"Williams, eh?" he said, smirking. "That's Rory's last name. Who knows, maybe you're related," he joked. Alice managed a shaky smile in return.

The Doctor turned his attention back to Kara. "What happened to you?"

Her eyes darkened. "Doesn't matter. All that matters to me now is keeping Alice safe." Kara sighed. "I have somewhere to go. It's a long way from here, but it's all I've got." She laid a hand on Alice's shoulder, the way a mother would to her child.

Suddenly, voices began to emanate from down the street. Amy and Rory shared an alarmed look. The former held up one finger and whispered, "Stay here. We'll check it out." The Doctor didn't bother arguing with them, knowing it was best if one of them stayed behind with Kara and Alice.

He stayed there, still and silent, until the two ran back around the corner. "It's police!" Amy hissed. "Three of them. What do we do?"

In an instant, the Doctor had a plan. "I'll get Kara and Alice out of here, you two distract the police. When the coast is clear, I'll come find you."

Amy nodded. "Good idea." She grabbed her husband's arm. "Come on, Rory."

He paled. "Wait a minute," he said slowly. "What if they ask us questions? I can't lie to police, Amy!"

She rolled her eyes. "Well, you're about to; now come on!" With that, she dragged him out of the alley.

The Doctor glanced over at Kara. "Come on. We really need to get out of here."

She nodded gravely, then walked over to the crate where he'd set down his sonic screwdriver. Kara picked it up and handed it back to him, and he nodded in thanks. Then, she reached into her back pocket and checked to see if her gun was loaded, snapping it shut.

"What are you  _doing_?" he whispered, eyes widening.

"Just in case," she replied quickly. "Get us out of here!"

He nodded. "Follow my lead. Run!"


	2. On the Run

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MY WHOVIAN BRAIN LIVES! THIS FIC IS BACK!  
> Not gonna lie, my writing is a bit lazier in this part. I was tired.  
> And yes, I am aware that "On the Run" is the title of the in-game chap where Connor and Kara meet. It just felt right. Anyway, hope you enjoy!  
> Also, I would like to dedicate this chapter to the lovely Cookiemonster2000, aka my muse. You're the best, sista, ily

Rory tightened his grip on Amy's hand as she dragged him out of the alley and into the street. She glanced back at him, murmured, "Let me do the talking." He nodded. Blood pounded in his ears from sheer fear as the three officers headed up the sidewalk.

One was an older man, with longish gray hair he kept pushing out of his eyes. His coat was carelessly slung about his shoulders, and his striped shirt was buttoned up wrong. Next to the man was a pretty blonde woman who looked to be about Amy's age, dressed in a simple suit and had her hair done up in a neat bun. Standing behind them was a tall and skinny man in a suit—in a way, he almost reminded Rory of the Doctor, because he looked so young. He was walking so perfectly it was almost freaky—like a… well, a robot.

That was when Rory noticed the hollow blue circle on the younger man's right temple—an LED light, just like on the androids in the shop window. (He was still very unsettled by androids—they were somewhat creepy.) A large serial code, printed on the android's suit jacket, caught Rory's eye—a model number.

_RK800_

It didn't take long for the officers to notice them. The young woman gave them a friendly nod, while the older man let out a heavy sigh. The android behind them just stared straight ahead as he walked, unblinking. (Okay, androids were  _very_  creepy.)

Before either of the human officers could say anything, the android stepped out in front of them and addressed Amy and Rory. "Excuse me," he said calmly. Rory hadn't expected him to talk that way, but wasn't surprised by it—a perfectly even, clipped voice. "We have information that there is a deviant android in this area—an AX400. Have you seen it?"

At the word "it", the woman suddenly looked very uncomfortable.

Quickly, Amy thought up a lie. She pointed at a row of houses across the street—the exact opposite direction that the Doctor had gone with Kara and Alice. "I think I may have seen one go that way. I saw a woman over there. Rather suspicious character. She kept looking over her shoulder."

The android held up his hand in front of her, opening his palm. A hologram appeared in his hand—a picture of Kara. Rory knew it was her—the woman in the photo had the same face, although she was wearing a dress, and her hair was brown and tied in a bun. "Was this who you saw?"

Amy nodded. "Yeah, that's her. I think our friend went that way, too," she said, gesturing to the alley. "If you're going to look over there, do you mind if we come with? We can't find him."

Before the android could reply, the woman stepped in front of the other two, nodding. "All right. C'mon. What're your names, by the way?"

"Amy," she replied. "This is my husband, Rory."

The woman smiled. "I'm Rose Tyler. An' if you're gonna join us, I suggest you be careful."

* * *

As Amy and Rory trailed after the three cops, apprehension began to rise in the former's chest. By going with them, she was making sure they stayed away from the Doctor and Kara. But they were detectives, trained to spot suspicious things and people. She couldn't lie forever.

She and Rory had learned the names of the two men—the human was Lieutenant Anderson, though Rose referred to him as Hank. (According to her, she preferred being called Rose rather than "Detective".) The android was called Connor. No title, no last name.

Though Amy did think the first name suited him very well.

As they reached the boundary of the abandoned houses, Amy realized that she may have made a mistake. Something caught Connor's attention.

A strange blue liquid on the chain link fence. Then, much to Amy's disgust, he touched a fingertip to the substance and brought it to his mouth.

"Jesus Christ, Connor!" the lieutenant drawled. (He hadn't said more than two words to them, so this startled Amy.) "I told you not to do that; it's disgusting!"

"I'm programmed to analyze blood samples in real time," Connor replied. "You know this, Lieutenant." He paused. "The Thirium belongs to an AX400 model. It was definitely here."

"Thirium?" Rory echoed. "What the hell is Thirium?"

Connor didn't hesitate at all before answering. "You call it 'blue blood'. It's the fluid that powers androids' biocomponents. There are different types, though the markers are usually subtle. An analysis of the blood can determine the model of the android it belongs to."

"Um, Connor?" Rose suddenly spoke up. "One question."

"Yes, Rose?"

The way he asked that question was unnerving to Amy—he sounded docile, placid. All too ready to obey the orders of a master.

Rose sighed. "Could you maybe… not refer to other androids as 'it' in front of me? Personally, I think it's kind of… weird, so if you could say 'he' or 'she' instead…"

"Not a problem, Rose. As I was saying, the AX400 was definitely here. Most likely last night. It…  _she_ … injured herself on the fence."

Rose nodded, glanced at Lieutenant Anderson, then gestured to the gap in the chain link. "Care to do the honors, Hank?"

He groaned and rolled his eyes, but held the metal back just enough for his partners to slip through. When Amy and Rory tried to follow, he stopped them with a raised hand.

"Uh-uh! This is official police business. You can't accompany us to a potential crime—"

"—Oh, hell." Rose cut him off. "They're just looking for their friend. And in case you haven't noticed, this isn't the best neighborhood. 'S safer if they stick with us." She glanced at the two of them. "Come on, we'll help you look. Just… try not to touch anything."

Amy nodded. The lieutenant let out a resigned sigh and pushed back the fence, letting her and Rory squeeze in. Thankfully, she avoided scratching herself on the rusted metal as she pushed through the small gap.

By the time she and Rory had gotten through, Connor was on the move. "She left a trail to follow from the small amount of Thirium she did lose." (He'd adapted to saying "she" rather quickly, Amy noticed.) "She went this way."

Everyone trailed after him as he stepped over to an abandoned house. The door was gone, and it almost looked like the hinges had been ripped out with it.  
A sudden  _thunk_  sounded from inside the house, and Connor was all but running before any of the humans realized what was happening.

Which was when Amy knew she'd made a mistake. A terrible mistake. In trying to lead the police away from Kara, she'd led them right to her.

Even so, she grabbed Rory's hand and went after Connor, with the detectives beside her.

When she caught up to him, Connor was speaking to someone—not Kara, she realized. Another android. A man. He had blonde hair, though she couldn't tell what color his eyes were, as he was looking away. His gaze was trained on the ground. He had a large knife in one hand, but it hung limply at his side.

"I'm looking for an AX400," he said slowly. "Have you seen her?"

The other android said nothing, keeping his eyes down.

Connor held up both hands in a sign of peace. "It's alright," he murmured. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I just want to know where the android is." Still the android remained silent.

"There's blue blood on the fence," Connor pressed. "I know another android was here."

Finally, he broke the silence, looking up at Connor. "Ralph just wanted to be nice… Ralph wanted to help." He sounded forlorn, dejected.

"Where is she?"

"She ran out the back door!" Ralph exclaimed, pointing in that direction. His eyes never lifted off the ground.

"Connor, what's going on?" Rose asked.

"She's in the area. Call it in!" he shouted, and began to sprint towards the back door. Amy and Rory had no choice but to follow.

As Amy moved past the android who had referred to himself as "Ralph", she caught a glimpse of his face. Half of it was all but destroyed, with cracks like a spider's web in his synthetic skin. One of his eyes was damaged, too.

Who had done that to him? And why was he so upset?

* * *

Kara ran past the abandoned house she'd spent the night in. She did her best to stay out of sight—after all, she'd threatened Ralph with a gun. Most likely, he wouldn't be too happy to see her.  
She was following the Doctor—he claimed to know how to sneak to the nearest train station.

Alice grasped her hand tight, and Kara knew she wouldn't be letting go anytime soon.

They had to walk down the street to get to the station, but took out-of-sight routes wherever they could. However, it was on one such road where everything went south—just past the abandoned house.

Before any of them knew what was happening, there was an officer on their tail. He shouted, "Stop! Police!" With that, Kara and the Doctor broke into a run. They could still hear shouts from behind. "Apprehend her! She's the deviant!"

Suddenly, Alice slipped and fell, crying out in pain. Quickly, the Doctor turned around and bent down to pick her up. "I've got her," he said quickly. "Come on!" Kara nodded and kept running after him.

They were forced to go down an alley blocked by a chain link fence. The Doctor and Kara both helped Alice climb over, then went over themselves.

The Doctor bent down and picked up Alice and began to descend the small hill they were now standing on, but stopped when he realized Kara was no longer with them. Confused, he turned around.

Kara was still standing at the fence, as if she'd frozen where she stood. Standing on the other side was the man who had chased them. An android, he realized. A blue LED light flashed on his right temple, and a model number was printed on his suit jacket.

But what interested the Doctor the most was the fact that the android was… hesitating. He hadn't moved to climb over the fence, though he probably could do so very quickly. His eyes were wide, his brow furrowed. Like he was… surprised. As if she wasn't what he'd expected to see.

Regardless of what the two androids were thinking, Kara had to run.

"Kara!" the Doctor shouted. "What the hell are you doing?! Run!"

The other android suddenly grabbed Kara's wrist through a slight gap in the chain link. She yelped in surprise, but before he could do anything, Kara deactivated the synth-skin on her hand. The Doctor realized she must have connected to him, for the other android's LED had spun yellow, then red, then back to yellow. She jerked her hand from his grasp while he was still stunned, but did not move. The android's LED reverted back to blue.

Suddenly another officer rounded the corner, pointing his gun at Kara. The other android held up his hand, barked out an order. "Don't shoot, we need her alive!"

That seemed to bring Kara back to her senses. She tore away from the fence and bolted toward the Doctor.

"What the hell was that?" he gasped, once she'd caught up to him. "You could have been hurt!"

"A distraction," Kara replied. "To get him to let go of me." She glanced at the glaring holographic sign, warning them not to go any further. "We need to cross. It's the only way we can get away from them."

The Doctor nodded. "You're right." He extended one arm, palm open, fingers outstretched. "Take my hand. We'll do it together."

Kara took a deep breath and twined her fingers with his, then they climbed over the railing onto the highway.

Just before they started running, the Doctor overheard someone call out a name—presumably that of the other android. "Connor! What the bloody hell are you doing?"

He knew that voice. It was so familiar to him that his hearts clenched at the sound of it. But it couldn't be her. It  _couldn't_.

Rose Tyler did not belong in that time or that place. She wasn't even in the same universe as him anymore. It couldn't have been her voice.

* * *

Connor stood there, suddenly blind and deaf to the world as the other android's memories flooded his mind, punctuated by words. He did the same, in a blind hope that she would see reason and surrender.

Greeting a SWAT captain during a hostage negotiation. His name is Connor. He's the android sent by CyberLife.

A name is registered at a CyberLife store. Her name is Kara. A violent man, yelling threats and vulgarities at his daughter. Kara has to keep Alice safe.

Flashes from different investigations. She is just another face to him, another android gone rogue. He has a mission to accomplish.

Alice's fear. Their flight from the house as Kara defended the little girl from Todd. Ralph's mental instability. She needs to get away. He needs to let her go.

He can't let her go. He  _can't_.

 _Then help me_ , she insisted.

Then another officer turned the corner, raising his gun. Connor had to do something, and do it fast. He turned and raised one hand, ordering the officer to hold his fire. "Don't shoot! We need it alive!"

In the split second it took for him to turn his back, the android ran away from the fence. She stood at the highway barrier, with a man at her side. He was holding onto the same girl in Kara's memories. Connor attempted to scan them from a distance, knowing the results wouldn't be very specific from that far away, but he needed to know if they were both human.

The results flashed in a nanosecond—the child was human, no question. Her name was Alice Williams. But the man… his face didn't return any results, as if he didn't exist on any records. And while the bio-scan proved he wasn't an android, according to the results, he almost didn't seem to be human, either.

It was probably just a brief glitch in Connor's scanners. Probably.

Then Rose was on his tail, with Hank at her side. Amy and Rory were lagging behind, but were making an obvious effort to keep up. "Connor! What the bloody hell are you doing?" Then her eyes fell on the two fugitives, running across the highway. Her mouth opened slightly in shock. "My God."

"Oh, fuck, that's insane," Hank gasped out. In a heartbeat, Amy and Rory had caught up too, and stared in shock at the scene before them.

"Are they  _crossing the highway_?! He's out of his mind," Amy said to herself. Rory gave her an alarmed look, and Hank fixed Rory with a firm stare as Connor started to climb the fence.

Rose tried to stop him, pulling on one arm. "Oi! Where do you think you're going?!"

"I can't let them get away," he replied. Ever since the exchange of information, Connor's mind had buzzed with questions. Where was the deviant going? Why was she so determined to protect the child? (To the left of him, he made a brief note of the way Hank was now trying to question Rory.)

Rose shook her head. "They might not even make it to the other side!"

"I can't take that chance," he shot back. He tried to jump up again, but Rose pushed him back down, more forcefully this time. "No! You'll get yourself killed!" They stared each other down for a heartbeat, as if their conversation was a battle of wills. "Do  _not_  go after them, Connor," Rose said firmly. Her eyes darkened with a kind of intensity he'd never seen in her before. "That's an order."

But he had a mission to accomplish. He took orders from CyberLife, not DPD detectives. And he wanted answers from that deviant.

So, he jumped up, using the gaps in the chain link as footholds, and clambered over the fence. Behind him, he heard Rose scream, "Connor,  _no_! Get back here, you idiot!"

He ignored the bright warning signs as he jumped down and ran, climbing over the railing. He ducked, jumped, and paused at exactly the right times to avoid being struck by oncoming cars. In no less than five seconds, he was racing down the next strip of land, catching up to the deviant and her human accomplice.

The human man and the child had already made it over the next rail as Connor caught up to them. He tried to grab the deviant— _Kara_ , his brain reminded him—but she delivered a swift kick to his leg, causing him to let go of her and stumble backward a step. She didn't put much distance between them, but it was enough for her to make it over the railing and take the other man's hand.

Connor chased after them, finally able to grab hold of the deviant again near the edge of the highway. Alice cried out to her, "Kara!"

She shouted back, "Go on, run!" as she tried to fight Connor off. But she couldn't wrench herself from his grasp, enabling him to turn her around, so that she was facing him. Before he could react, she took hold of his hand again, connecting her mind to his.

New bits of information flooded him. An encounter with an unknown android in the rain. An address. A destination. She was going to convince her human friend to take her there.

 _Help me_ , she repeated. Then she disconnected from his mind.

An oncoming semi startled them both back into reality. Kara dived forward, jumping over the next railing. Connor moved a step backward, then ran forward once the semi had passed. He was scarcely able to avoid being struck by another car as he jumped over the railing.

He was safe. But the android and the two humans were nowhere to be seen.

"Shit," he cursed. He straightened up, let out a sigh. His mission was not yet over. In the heartbeat it had taken for him to stand, he'd run the address Kara had given him through a database of homeowners. He knew where they were going, and he had a name.

_Zlatko Andronikov._

* * *

"Okay, what part of 'that's an order' did you not understand?!" Rose yelled. "You could have been hit!"

Connor was back in the street with Hank, Rose, Amy, and Rory. Hank was staring coldly at the two newcomers, while Rose was letting Connor know exactly what she thought of his highway escapade.

Her face was reddened with anger, her hands curled into fists. "What the  _hell_  is wrong with you, Connor?! I told you not to cross for your own safety! Do you place no value on your own life?"

He sighed. "I was given orders by CyberLife to apprehend any deviants we encounter. I simply did what was necessary to accomplish my mission."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Fuck that! I'm just trying to keep you alive."

"Alright, enough," Hank snapped. He was standing to the left of them, scowling and holding up a placating hand. "Rose, you can give the idiot a piece of your mind later. We—"

"I have a name and an address," Connor cut in. "The deviant plans to go to the home of Zlatko Andronikov for sanctuary. We should probably—"

Hank rolled his eyes. "Listen, we'll deal with that later. First things first, I wanna get some lunch. All this bullshit is making me hungry. Then, we're gonna drag these British idiots back to the station—and don't you even  _think_  about running," he said firmly, giving Amy a sharp glare. "Because they lied. I think their friend is the one helping that deviant. And we need to prove it."

Connor's eyes widened in surprise. "What makes you so sure?"

"Doesn't matter. Call it intuition. Just… you and Rose get them back to the car. I'm driving." The lieutenant began to walk back in the direction of his car, leaving Rose and Connor to deal with Amy and Rory.

"Sorry abou' him," Rose said, smiling apologetically. "He gets like that sometimes. It's best if you humor him. We'll have you in and out in 20 minutes. That alright?"

The couple shared a look, then nodded. "Yeah," Amy replied. "That's alright."

* * *

Hank parked the car in front of a dilapidated food truck. The sign was crooked, the metal on the walls rusted. Several of the nearby tables were missing their umbrellas. He glanced over at Rose. "You want anything?"

She shrugged. "Get me a Coke. I need the caffeine, after a day like today."

Hank nodded. "Alright. Be right back." Then he opened the door and exited the car, slamming the door behind him. Amy and Rory were left alone with Rose and Connor, with heavy metal playing from the car stereo at a low volume.

"What do we do?" Amy whispered as quietly as she could.

Rory sighed. "I don't know, Ames. But we lied once, we can do it again."

Amy tilted her head in Connor's direction. The android was sitting right next to Amy. "Might not want to say that in front of  _Robo-Cop_  over here, stupid face," she hissed.

In the passenger seat, Rose chuckled. She turned around to face the three of them, smirking. "I used to have this friend. We argued all the time, just like you two. Just… brings back memories," she said, shrugging.

Then, Hank returned to the car, with a sandwich in one hand and two drinks in the other. He handed one to Rose, who thanked him, then sat back down in the driver's seat. A few moments passed in silence, then Connor piped up, "Rose… you really shouldn't drink that. It has high amounts of sugar and caffeine, along with artificial coloring that could damage your teeth. Lieutenant, your meal is no better. It has 1.4 times the recommended daily intake of calories and twice the cholesterol level. You shouldn't eat that."

Amy bit her lip, and Hank rolled his eyes, shrugging. "Ah, everybody's gotta die of something."

Rose burst out laughing. She turned around, took a sip of her drink. "You're a riot, Connor. You know that? An android lecturing me on human health… who knew?" She sighed, still grinning. "You're not a doctor. So don't tell me what to do," she teased. "Save the analytical stuff for when we get back to the station."

* * *

Kara made it onto the train car just after the Doctor. She grabbed onto the nearest metal pole, taking note of the scene before her. Alice was still being carried by the Doctor, her face pressed against his shoulder. "You alright?" he murmured. The girl nodded. "Do you want me to put you down?"

When she nodded again, he set her down on the floor of the train car. Alice leaned against the pole, closing her eyes.

Then the Doctor turned his attention to Kara. His eyes were wide, soft with kindness and concern. His brow furrowed. "Are you okay, Kara?"

Without thinking, she all but collapsed against him, wrapping her arms around him in an embrace. She felt him gently rest his hands on her back. "Thank you," she whispered.

He nodded. "Of course."

They stayed that way for a minute or so, doing nothing to break the silence that was underscored only by the train trudging along. When Kara removed herself from his embrace, he sighed. "What… was all that about? With the other android on the highway, I mean."

She shrugged. "I tried to make him see reason. That's all."

He smiled slightly at her. "That's the sort of thing I would've done. I can tell we're going to get along."

Kara managed to return the smile. "Thanks." She paused, sighing. "What are you gonna do now?"

He shrugged, leaned against the support pole. "Depends. Do you have a plan?"

She nodded. "Yes. I have an address. I think it's somebody's house. Apparently, whoever lives there will help androids that are… that are like me."

"Good plan," he replied brightly, smiling at her. "I'll go with you, then. Just in case."

Kara tilted her head in confusion, as if she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing. "But… what about… your friends?"

He grinned, waved a dismissive hand. "They'll be alright. Worst case, they get arrested for no good reason. If they do get arrested, the police will have to let them go sooner or later. I'll just get you and Alice to safety, then come find them. They can take care of themselves until then, don't worry."

Kara sighed. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am absolutely sure. They're clever. I will find them. But right now, you are in more danger than they are. So, where are we going?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Amy and Rory are interrogated, and the Doctor and Kara arrive at Zlatko's house! But what will Connor do with the information he has? Stay tuned!


	3. The Mansion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is more action-packed, with lots of badassery! Hope y'all enjoy.

_Nov 6, 2038_

_5:30 PM_

The interrogation room was dimly lit, and the one florescent bulb that illuminated the place kept flickering in and out—which wasn't doing anything to lessen the unnerving feel of the room. The walls were a stark steel gray, and a window was cut into the same wall as the door. In the very center was a metal table with two chairs; one on each side. Rory was seated in one, but the other remained unoccupied—Connor had opted to stand in front of him. Rory had no doubt the lieutenant and the other detective were watching through the glass. Rory had been at the station for at least three hours, and assumed it was probably part of some sort of ploy—the longer they waited, the more unnerved they got.

"Well, I'll skip the part where I introduce myself," Connor said, leaning forward and pressing his palms against the edge of the table. For half a second, Rory could have sworn something in Connor's expression changed. There was an almost imperceptible shift in the android's eyes, a flicker. As if Connor was seeing something Rory wasn't. "You already know my name. Would you please state your full name for the record?"

"Rory Williams," he replied. He was careful to not sound afraid. Showing weakness around a machine like Connor would be a bad idea.

"Do you know why you are here, Mr. Williams?"

Rory sighed, rolled his eyes. "Because a police lieutenant thinks I know something that I don't. That's all it is, really."

Connor pulled out the other chair and sat down, sliding a file folder across the table. "Let me show you something." He opened the folder and produced several photos, pushing them almost directly beneath Rory's nose.

One was a photograph of a dead man—he was slightly overweight, had greasy brown hair stuck to his head, and a gaping gun wound in his chest. Another was a headshot of Kara. It was nearly identical to the holographic photo Connor had shown them earlier—the same face with brown hair tied up in a bun, dressed in a black-and-white uniform. Those same blue eyes. The lapel on the uniform was printed with the model code  _AX400_ , not unlike the code on Connor's jacket. A third photo showed the face of a little girl. Her dark hair was pinned up in a ponytail, and her wide brown eyes had a sadness to them that was unusual for a child.  _Alice_.

Connor jabbed the first photo with an index finger. "This man's name was Todd Williams. He was murdered with his own gun. The weapon was missing from the scene, as was his daughter Alice Williams." He gestured to Alice's photograph. "Do you recognize either of them?"

Rory shook his head, cleared his throat. "No, I don't."

Connor's eyes narrowed. He pushed the center picture, the one of Kara, a little further forward, bringing it into focus. "What about her? Your wife mentioned seeing a suspicious woman matching this description. Does that sound familiar?"

Rory shrugged. "Maybe. So what? What's that got to do with us?"

"Your friend," Connor replied. "I have reason to believe the associate you were in search of is helping this deviant. She murdered Todd Williams and possibly kidnapped his daughter. She is extremely dangerous. Unstable. If your friend is helping her, then he is in danger too."

A sigh, another shrug. "Look, I dunno where he is or what he's doing. Our friend, I mean. But you can't keep us shut up in here. The bloke's rubbish on his own, and he has no idea where we are."

"This friend of yours is in fact an adult, correct?"

Rory chuckled. "That's debatable." When Connor fixed him with another hard stare, Rory coughed uncomfortably and continued, "But, age-wise, yes. He is."

"Then unless he is in the company of this deviant, your friend is in no danger. Unless you have reason to believe otherwise, of course." The android's brow quirked up, as if feigning innocent curiosity, and something about that infuriated Rory.

He let out a frustrated sigh and slammed his palm down on the table. "I told you I don't know where he is! But he's certainly not with a bloody android! Yes, we saw her. So what? Amy told you, didn't she? So why are we here?!"

Connor narrowed his eyes. Then, not taking his eyes off Rory, he rose from his chair. "Then I suppose I'll have to see what your wife has to say."

He turned and started to walk back towards the door but was intercepted by a hand on his wrist. In a flash, Rory had gotten up and all but ran over to Connor. "Listen to me," he hissed. "If you threaten her, or scare her, or if, God forbid, you  _hurt_  her… you will regret it. Understand?"

The android regarded him with cold, unflinching eyes, and effortlessly extricated his arm from Rory's grasp. "I have no reason to do such things, Mr. Williams. Now if you'll excuse me, I have other matters to attend to. Detective Tyler will see you in a moment." Connor opened the door and exited, clicking it shut behind him. Rory glowered at the android the entire time.

"Prick," he spat, once Connor had left.

* * *

Connor's questioning of Amy went no better than the previous interrogation—if anything, it was worse. Not only was he unable to get her to contradict anything her husband had said, she provided snarky answers to every single statement he made and every question he asked.

" _State your full name for the record, please."_

" _Amelia Pond-Williams. What's it to you?"_

" _Do you recognize any of these individuals?"_

" _I would if I knew who they were, but I don't."_

" _What about the woman you claim you saw? Does your friend match the description of the man who was with her?"_

" _First of all, my friend looks like a lot of blokes I've seen. Hell, he even looks a bit like you! And second, I did see a woman, but there is no way_ in hell _our friend would try to cross a bloody highway with someone!"_

" _You made a specific statement concerning the human man. You said that he was, quote, 'out of his mind.' You made no such remark concerning the deviant."_

" _I said it in the heat of the moment, sue me. He, she, they, it's all the same. What they did was absolutely insane, and it's a miracle they didn't get hit. But we had nothing to do with that."_

* * *

Now, Connor paced the bullpen, finding himself at a loss as to what to do next. Rose was taking too long with their witnesses. He reached into his pocket, fingers finding the quarter. He forced himself to stand still, flipping the coin over and over. His mind kept going back to the highway, and Kara's eyes were all but seared into his mind.

The restlessness was residual, left over from when she'd connected to him. It had to be. And it was easy to get impatient with the detectives who seemed to be stalling on purpose regarding the deviant's next destination.

He couldn't stop thinking about the way Kara's eyes met with his through that fence. The fear that was in them. Without her LED, he had almost forgotten that she wasn't… alive. She'd  _looked_  alive. And when she'd connected to him, shown him her memories, she'd even felt alive. She'd  _felt_.

To the left of him, Hank—who was seated at his desk—sighed and rolled his eyes. "Stop messing with that damn coin, Connor. You're making  _me_  feel on edge just watching you."

He considered explaining that it was a recalibration technique and the necessity of doing so, but after a moment of consideration, he knew the lieutenant would not appreciate such an explanation. So, he merely pocketed the coin and replied, "Sorry, Lieutenant."

A few minutes later, Rose Tyler returned to the bullpen with Amy and Rory at her side. "All right. Connor questioned you, so now we need to talk about the next step." She paused, sighing, and glanced at both Amy and Rory. "I believe that you aren't lying about being involved with the android. However, both Lieutenant Anderson and Connor disagree with me. We're trying to come up with a compromise, since they are hell-bent on keeping an eye on you."

Connor stepped forward, facing the detective. "I think I have a viable solution." Which was true—he'd needed something to think about to distract himself from the recurring image of that pair of eyes, peering at him through the chain link. "They will accompany us to the home of Zlatko Andronikov—though they should remain behind in the car—and we can determine whether they were telling the truth when the deviant is arrested."

Rose and Hank shared a look, and the latter rolled his eyes, but the former nodded. "That's… not a bad idea, actually," she murmured, giving Connor a smile. "Thank you, Connor." He nodded in acknowledgment of her praise, the faintest of smiles gracing his lips.

Hank groaned. "Side with the piece of plastic, as always," he snapped. "Honestly, Tyler, you treat them like they're more human than we are. I'll put up with working with this guy, but don't expect me to be friends with him."

Rose pursed her lips. "Hank, we can discuss this later. For now—" she glanced at Connor. "We need that address. Frankly, I'm curious. Why'd she give it to you?"

Connor cleared his throat. The situation suddenly seemed… uncomfortable. Most likely, a temporary blip in his social programming. "She… asked me to help her. She almost seemed desperate."

Rose's brow furrowed. "Strange. Did she tell you anything else? About why she killed her owner, perhaps?"

"May I ask why you are inquiring, Detective?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. I'm just curious. The more we know about her, the easier it will be to think like her."

Connor nodded in understanding. "She showed me her memories. I'm not entirely sure why. Todd Williams… tried to physically harm his daughter. Most likely, he was high on Red Ice, as well. The deviant was protecting Alice Williams from her father. She stole his gun and shot him after he tried to attack both her and the child."

"Blimey," Rose murmured to herself. "Like a mother protecting her kid." She paused, sighing. "She showed you all that?" When Connor nodded, she continued. "Did you get anything else? Her name, maybe?"

"Detective, with all due respect, I'm not sure why that is relevant to the—"

"It's Rose, for the thousandth time," she said, giving him a firm look. "Her  _name_ , Connor. Did you get it or not?"

He wasn't sure why he hesitated before answering. It had been strange, knowing something neither of them did. He'd been trying to put the name out of his mind, to regard her—really, he should have been using the word "it"—as nothing more than a deviant, a nameless defective machine. But speaking the name aloud would make things all the more real, would solidify the presence of her memories inside his head. But he had to. It was an order.

"Kara," he finally replied. "Her name is Kara."

"Nice name," Rose mused, half to herself. "But that's beside the point. How about that address?"

* * *

It was nearly eight o'clock in the evening by the time the Doctor and Kara made it to their next destination—a run-down mansion on the other side of Detroit. They came to a stop in front of massive iron gates, the pointed tips of the bars still looking sharp and dangerous. The actual building was in much worse shape—parts of the roof sagged, the brick crumbled, and massive cobwebs hung from nooks and corners. With all the lights off save for the one on the front porch, the towering gates, and the rain, it wouldn't look out of place in a horror film.

Reluctantly, the Doctor gently set Alice down on the ground—he knew Kara was dead-set on coming here, and since her only priority was escape, he knew there was little he could say or do to change her mind.

Kara knelt in front of the little girl, pushing a few stray hairs out of Alice's eyes. "You gonna be okay?" she murmured. Alice nodded, and Kara rose to her feet, taking the girl's hand. "Don't worry, Alice," she said, managing a smile. "We'll get some help here. Soon, this will all be just a bad memory." She cleared her throat, glanced at the Doctor. "Well… this is the place."

He let out a sigh, studied the wrought-iron gates.  _If this house isn't the creepiest place I've ever seen, then I'm not the Doctor_ , he thought to himself. But he said nothing to indicate his concern as he hesitantly pushed the gates open. Looks could be deceiving, after all.

He held open the gate for Kara and Alice, letting it close behind him once they were all through. The trio of runaways started up the sidewalk and climbed the steps to the front porch, glad to be out of the rain. While Kara rang the bell, Alice reached over and tugged on the Doctor's sleeve, trying to get his attention. He leaned down, motioning for her to speak.

"This place is scary, Doctor," she whispered. "I don't like it."

The Doctor nodded. "I don't either, I'll be honest," he murmured. "But Kara seems to think this is a good option. We can trust her, yeah?" Alice nodded, and he smiled at her. "Right, then. Don't worry, I'll be here if anything goes wrong, okay?" Then the door creaked open, and the Doctor stood bolt upright.

Peering at them through the gap was the face of a man. He was middle-aged, with a rather bulbous nose, narrow dark eyes, furrowed eyebrows, greasy dark hair, and a full beard, streaked silver with age. It certainly didn't help his gruff expression.

Kara hesitated before she spoke. "Are you Zlatko?"

The door opened wider, as did the man's mouth. "Who's asking?"

"I was told you could help us," Kara murmured. The man shook his head.

"I don't know who told you that," he answered. "But you came to the wrong place. I'm sorry." As the man moved to close the door, Kara ran forward, stopping it with her hand. "Wait! We really need your help."

His eyes fell on Alice, who was staring up with wide eyes while half-hiding behind the Doctor's leg. The Doctor took one of her hands in his, nodding reassuringly. The girl's breaths were still ragged with unease, but she showed herself a little more.

The strange man thought for a moment, then nodded. The door opened wide, and he motioned for them to enter. "All right, come in." He turned and walked away from the door, leaving it open.

The Doctor and Kara shared a look, and the latter nodded. The three of them stepped inside the house, and the Doctor shut the door behind them.

They were greeted with a massive interior—spiraling staircases, Persian rugs, and bookshelves lined with dusty volumes. All the furniture seemed to be antique, and dust had settled in the crevices. The house was clearly very old.

"Come on in, don't be shy!" Zlatko said in a friendly voice. Almost…  _too_  friendly.

Something about this place wasn't right, that much the Doctor knew.

The three turned left and passed by a round table with a blindingly bright lamp as its centerpiece, pausing beneath the nearest doorway. Zlatko was just in front of them and gestured with one arm behind their backs. "Luther, would you be so kind as to take our friends' coats?"

They turned around just in time to see a massive shadow fall over them. Instinctively, Kara gasped in fear and drew Alice closer to her body as the other android stepped into view. He was much taller than everyone else in the room and quite muscular, with dark skin and close-cropped black hair. His eyes were so dark they were almost black, and he stared down at Kara, as if studying her. The blue LED on his right temple marked him as an android. Zlatko stepped over to Luther.

"Oh, don't be afraid of our, ah, big friend here. Luther is just another android that I helped," he murmured, glancing at the android. "He keeps me company in this big, empty old house." Immediately, alarm bells went off in the Doctor's mind.

It wasn't because of Luther's size (probably an android designed to carry heave loads) or even the fact that he still had his LED, but rather his eyes. They were dull and cold, lacking the life present in the eyes of most deviants. And why would an android that Zlatko helped want to stay behind in a dusty old mansion with no one except the owner for company?

Something wasn't adding up.

Even so, Kara and Alice both removed their coats and handed them over to Luther. When Zlatko gave the Doctor an expectant look, he shook his head. "Nah, I'm alright." Zlatko seemed to accept that answer and gestured towards the massive sitting area. "Please, make yourselves at home."

The room looked inviting enough, with a plush sofa and chairs, more fancy rugs, and a fire crackling in the hearth. Even if things went wrong, the Doctor knew there wouldn't be any harm in sitting on the furniture for a few minutes. He nodded at Kara, who was glancing at him apprehensively.

Kara took Alice's hand and guided her over to the couch, while the Doctor stood behind them. The mansion was making him uneasy, and he couldn't sit still. Luther stood near him, just to the right pf the couch, while Zlatko poured himself a drink from a liquor cabinet. "So… how did you hear about me?"

There was a moment of silence, then Kara spoke up. "An android," she replied. "On the street, he said you could help us."

Zlatko knocked back his drink, the ice clinking against the glass as he nodded thoughtfully. "I see." He crossed over to the couch across from them and sat down. For a moment, he studied her, then broke the silence again. "Deviant, huh?"

In answer, Kara gave an almost imperceptible nod. Zlatko then trained his eyes on Alice. "What about her?"

"She's human," Kara replied quickly. The Doctor nodded in agreement. "I'm not an android either. I'm just helping them."

Zlatko leaned back onto the couch. "And, let me guess… you wanna find a safe place," he said. "Somewhere you can start a new life." He cleared his throat, smiling slightly. "I hear Canada is lovely this time of the year. Beautiful landscapes, open spaces, clean air… and no android laws!" he concluded, raising the glass in his hand for emphasis. "Great place for a fresh start."

Kara smiled fully for the first time since the Doctor had met her. "Yes, that's… that's exactly what we want," she replied, glancing at Alice.

"Of course!" Zlatko said cheerfully. "I can help you."

 _So far so good_ , thought the Doctor.  _Maybe I'm just being paranoid._

"But first we have to get rid of your tracker," Zlatko went on. Immediately, the warning bells in the Doctor's mind rang again.

Kara spoke up before the Doctor could say anything. "Tracker?" she echoed, confused.

Zlatko nodded rapidly. "Yeah. All androids are fitted with a tracking device to locate them at all times. I'll remove yours, and then—"

"Hold on," the Doctor cut in, raising one hand. "Pardon my interruption, Mr.—"

"Andronikov," Zlatko replied. "Zlatko Andronikov."

The Doctor nodded. "Yeah. Anyway, as I was saying, Mr. Andronikov, I don't believe the removal of her tracking device is really necessary. I'm familiar with deviants. Their tracking devices don't seem to work, for whatever reason. Maybe some sort of glitch. But either way, all we really need is—"

"You make a good point," Zlatko said, spreading his free hand placatingly. "However, I really think it's better to be safe than sorry. Can't we agree on that?" He tilted his head to one side, smiled a bit. Before the Doctor could give him an answer, Zlatko rose from the couch. "I'll take her down to—"

The Doctor shook his head, gave Zlatko a firm glance. "You can't take Kara anywhere unless we come with her. Got it?"

Zlatko froze for a millisecond, then nodded. "Got it. Shall we?"

"Give us a moment, would you?" the Doctor replied. "You go on ahead. I'd like to speak with them for a moment.  _Alone_."

Zlatko stiffened again but made no objection—he simply nodded and turned around. "I'll wait for you in the other room."

Once he had gone, and the Doctor was sure the man was out of earshot, he leaned close to Kara and Alice, whispering, "Listen to me, both of you. I do not trust that man, nor do I doubt that he is dangerous. There is no need to remove your tracker, Kara," he said gravely. "None." He cleared his throat. "We are going to play along until the very last second, because I'm certain something else is at work here. I need to find out what that is. And I'll see if I can help Luther."

Then the Doctor turned to Alice. "Alice, if anything happens, I want you to put up a fight. If he or anyone else tries to grab you, do your absolute best to make them let go. Hit, scream, whatever you can think of,  _do_  it. And no matter what happens to us after that, I want you to run for your life. Can you do that?"

After a moment of hesitation, Alice nodded, and the Doctor smiled at her. "Good," he murmured, and bent to press a kiss to her forehead. "Don't be afraid, Alice. I'll keep you safe." Alice nodded again, grasped his hand firmly. "Okay."

"You three coming?" Zlatko's voice sounded from down the hall.

"One minute," the Doctor replied, giving Kara a final glance. She nodded to show she understood, and the three of them got up. They walked over to where Zlatko said he'd be, and he gestured for them to follow. "Come on, it's this way. Everything we need is in the basement."

They followed him down a wide, dark staircase, the walls changing from paper and wood to concrete and crumbling brick as they descended. Lights installed in the ceiling above gave the whole place a bright, unnatural, dangerous quality.

They stepped off the stairs and were met with the sight of abandoned stables. The bars on the stall doors were rusted, some having fallen off. Wood had rotted away with time. A few stalls were lacking doors altogether. Scraps of leather and fabric hung in odd places, carelessly strewn about. Some parts of the floor they had to step over to avoid the puddles of water.

"Please excuse the mess," Zlatko said as they walked behind him. "I needed somewhere discreet for my machines." As he was speaking, it took the Doctor and Kara a moment to realize Alice was no longer right by them.

They shared a glance and turned around. Alice was staring into one of the stalls, the interior almost completely obscured by darkness. She appeared to have frozen where she stood, as if trapped by some unseen terror. Immediately, they walked back to join her.

"Removing trackers is illegal, so I opted for discretion over comfort," Zlatko went on, oblivious to what was occurring behind him. "I hope the little one isn't too scared."

There was nothing inside the stall apart from some old pieces of furniture, so Kara laid a hand on Alice's shoulder and steered her away. "No. No, she'll be alright," Kara replied, forcing herself to relax.

"That's good. This way, please."

They turned another corner and found themselves inside a large room. Alice lingered in the doorway, obviously unnerved by the machine whirring at the other end. The Doctor recognized it immediately—a circular pad with long white assembly arms behind it, not unlike the tubes used to put together, take apart, or repair androids—something usually done at CyberLife. Multicolored wires ran away from the machine and into various computers. Definitely a bad sign.

"If you could just stand over there," Zlatko said, gesturing to the pad. Kara nodded, but suddenly grasped the Doctor's hand in a viselike grip so firm that his fingers turned white. He could almost feel the fear that was surely running through her veins.

For a moment, Zlatko's back turned, and the Doctor saw his chance. Quickly, he leaned over and whispered into her ear. "I have a plan. Do as he says."

"Protect Alice, no matter what happens," Kara replied. "That's all that matters to me."

He nodded.

Kara released her grip on the Doctor and stepped into the machine. He, in turn, stepped back to stand beside Alice. Only then did he realize Luther was standing there too, like a massive, silent guardian, easily capable of breaking any of them in half.

Zlatko typed into one of the computers while Kara stood there. Her gray-blue eyes met the Doctor's, wide with fear and desperation. She was screaming for help, though not a single syllable had passed her lips. In an equally silent answer, the Doctor reached into his jacket pocket and partially removed his sonic screwdriver. Kara's brow furrowed and she tilted her head in confusion but was forced to straighten up and relax into a neutral expression as Zlatko turned around. "I should warn you, this could be quite unpleasant."

He hit a different button, and the assembly arms whirred to life. A cable went into the back of her neck, two of the arms grabbed her wrists, immobilizing her arms, and a third pushed her by her waist, lifting her off the ground.

Zlatko left his computer and walked over to the machine, so that he was staring directly at Kara. "You know what's strange? For some unknown reason, the trackers seem to stop working in deviants. That's why it's so hard to find them," he said, then let out a slight, almost disbelieving, laugh. "Your friend here—" he glanced back at the Doctor for a moment— "was right. There's really no reason to remove your tracker."

To her credit, Kara refused to dignify the man with a response, though this allowed him to continue rambling. It was a good technique, though—Zlatko's own ego was enough of a distraction. As Zlatko kept talking, the Doctor took his sonic screwdriver out of his jacket pocket and hid it behind his back, keeping a careful eye on Luther.

"People believe what they want," Zlatko said, pacing back and forth in front of the machine. "And you deviants are  _so_  naïve." He paused, scoffed. "They all come to me, expecting me to help them." He uttered the word  _help_  as if the very thought of doing so for a deviant—or perhaps anyone, really—was abhorrent to him.

Zlatko sighed. "And I just… reset them, sell them on." Then he chuckled. "Or I keep them for my little experiments."

At the word  _experiments_ , the Doctor realized that it may not have been darkness alone that terrified Alice. She had seen something, he was sure of it.

At that, Kara's fear won out, and she began shouting. "No! I don't wanna be reset! LET ME GO!"

Before the Doctor could do anything, Alice cried out and attempted to run to the android. "KARA!" She was stopped by Luther, who laid a massive hand on the girl's shoulder and pushed her back with next to no effort—though it hadn't looked like he'd hurt her.

Zlatko started laughing, and the Doctor's hatred of the man only grew. "Oh, I forgot about the, the child, and your little human friend here!" He took a step towards the two of them, meeting the Doctor's gaze. "What's it to you, huh?" he said, gesturing to Kara. "Why do you care?"

"Don't call her that," the Doctor spat at the other man. "She's more human than you'll ever be."

Zlatko smirked. "You sleeping with her or something? Don't answer that, by the way, I wouldn't be surprised." He paused, motioned to Luther. "Um… lock them up, I'll deal with them later."

Kara let out a strangled cry. "ALICE! ALICE, NO!"

Zlatko turned to face Kara, sighed. "Wow! A deviant that wants to be a mother. That's… that's so sweet! And so deluded," he went on, shaking his head. "I think it's time we put you outta your misery."

Luther's head was turned, and Zlatko was walking away, back over to the computer. In an instant, the Doctor saw an opportunity. He grabbed Alice's hand and made a mad dash for the monitor, blocking the screen. Luther started to head towards them, as did Zlatko, but he still had the advantage.

"Don't you dare," he snarled, giving Zlatko a sharp look, his green eyes burning with cold fire. "Leave them alone." Alice hid behind his legs, clinging to him.

Zlatko all but rolled his eyes at the Doctor. "You really are on their side, aren't you? I don't see the point. Trust me, being erased and feeling nothing is almost better. I almost envy it," he said, glancing back at Kara. "That's enough, come on."

When he still refused to move, Zlatko took another step forward. Before the Doctor realized what was going to happen, he'd been punched in the face.

The pain was so sharp and sudden it blinded him for a moment. He staggered to the side, collapsing onto all fours, while Zlatko grabbed hold of Alice. The Doctor heard the other man cry out in pain as he shakily rose to his feet.

"You bit me!" Zlatko snapped. Alice was standing across from him and giving the man a look of pure hatred, all but baring her teeth at him. "You're lucky you're human, you little bitch."

"I won't say it again, Zlatko," the Doctor cut in slowly. "Let them go."

Zlatko stared at him incredulously. "Do you really want to get broken in half? Because I could tell Luther to do that, easily. Or, you could leave it here, and you and the little one, forget you ever saw me, and nothing would happen to either of you."

"Do you  _really_  think I'm that callous?" the Doctor replied. "You think I would be so cruel as to walk out of here and leave a little girl's mother behind? Well, you're mistaken."

Zlatko laughed, shaking his head. "It's not her mother; it's just a machine. Really, you and she should be glad you aren't like that android."

Luther was closer to the Doctor now. He had one chance to act.

Quickly, he pressed a few buttons on his screwdriver, out of Zlatko's line of sight. "Well, you were right about one thing. Alice is very lucky that she's human. If she wasn't, I can't imagine what sort of terrible things you'd do to her in your experiments. However, you made an assumption about me that isn't exactly correct. You assumed that, since I am not an android, I must be human. But unfortunately for you,  _Mr. Andronikov_ … I'm not."

In a flash, he'd grabbed his sonic screwdriver, held it against Luther's arm, and activated it before the android could do anything. As the light flashed green and it hummed, Luther's LED flickered in and out. When it finally stabilized, the android blinked. The Doctor looked up, meeting Luther's eye.

"Luther? You're free now."

"D-Don't listen to him," Zlatko stammered. "I'm your master, got it? You… you have to do what I tell you."

Luther shook his head. "No," he said in a low voice. "Not this time." Then he advanced on Zlatko, and his former master was powerless to do anything to stop him.

He grabbed hold of Zlatko, immobilizing the man, then nodded to the Doctor. "Get her out."

The Doctor didn't need to be told twice. He turned his sonic screwdriver on the computers, short-circuiting the entire system. It could never be used on another android again.

The restraints fell away from Kara, and though she was unceremoniously dropped onto the floor, she was otherwise unhurt. Alice ran to her, wrapping her arms around Kara.

The android bent down and hugged the sobbing girl, returning the embrace. "It's okay, Alice. We're okay."

Zlatko still struggled with his captor, until a swift blow from Luther sent the man to the ground, out cold. "This way," he ordered, running for the basement exit. The three runaways followed him, not daring to question the android that had just knocked Zlatko unconscious.

In the stable hallway, the Doctor paused in front of the same stable where he and Kara had found Alice standing stock-still, terrified. He leaned closer, trying to get a glimpse of anything inside.

Suddenly, a hand poked through the metal bars. Not human, that was for sure. Both the synthetic skin and white plating were gone, leaving only the gray metal skeleton. A voice inside rasped, "Help us."

Kara also froze at the voice and stood next to the Doctor as he opened the door, drawing in a horrified breath. They both took a step inside, Alice hiding behind them. What was inside the stall made the Doctor wish Luther had killed Zlatko instead of knocking him out.

There were no less than half a dozen androids, all naked and horribly mutilated. Some were missing eyes, limbs, and skin, while others had claw marks on their bodies or parts of them had been dissected. The android that had reached out to them was not only missing a good amount of his synthetic skin, but it looked like his jaw had been removed and replaced with another one. "My God," the Doctor said to himself.

"He likes to play with us," the android explained. "Creating monsters, for his amusement." He paused, looked the Doctor directly in the eye. The android's already-distorted voice cracked further. "But who's the real monster?"

Before the Doctor could reply, Kara ran from the room, taking Alice with her as they sprinted down the hall. Quickly, he instructed, "Get them all out of here. I have to go," and chased after Kara.

Luther met them in the front room, and the next few minutes were spent frantically searching the rooms of the mansion for anything that might help them. At one point, he and Kara came across a massive robotic polar bear, hunched in a cage barely large enough to hold it. Kara opened the cage, stepping back as the animal exited the cage. It growled softly but made no move to attack either of them—it merely surveyed them with beady black eyes before walking to the other end of the room. It probably hadn't been able to walk around freely in a long time.

Then, when they were regrouping in the entryway, about to make an escape, someone knocked at the door. "Anybody home?" A man's gruff voice sounded from the other side of the door. "Open up, Mr. Andronikov. Detroit Police."

Luther nodded at the others. "Hide," he whispered. "I'll deal with the officer." He tilted his head in the direction of one of the rooms. "Go in there."

The Doctor made no objections as he grabbed Kara's hand and led her and Alice into the room Luther had told them to hide in. Even ducked behind furniture, the Doctor and Kara could still make out the faint voices in the front room.

"Lieutenant Anderson, DPD. This is my partner. Is Mr. Andronikov home? We have some questions for him."

"Zlatko is not entertaining guests at the moment, Lieutenant."

A laugh. "Does 'Detroit Police Department' make it sound like I wanna be entertained? Where is he?"

Then another voice cut in. "We have reason to believe there is a deviant android on these premises. You should really let us in."

At that, Kara froze. "I know that voice," she whispered. "That's the android that chased us on the highway, I'm sure of it. I… asked him to help us."

"You told him  _where we were_?" he hissed, incredulous. "Didn't it occur to you that that might be a bad idea?"

Kara glared. "I don't know, okay? I thought I could convince him."

Then, the sound of a blow landing emanated in the front room, followed by shouts of "Hey!" from the lieutenant, the android ordering Luther to stand down, then a gunshot.

Before the Doctor could stop her, Kara jumped up and ran to the doorway. She hid behind the frame as the Doctor told Alice to stay put and moved to join her.

A gun lay discarded on the ground, and it was impossible to tell who'd fired it—though no one seemed to be hurt, so the bullet must've missed its mark. The police lieutenant was on the floor, trying to regain his balance. Luther had probably hit him. He was also attempting to physically subdue the other android, the way he'd done to Zlatko, but the android was much faster and seemed able to predict what Luther was going to do.

But Luther's strength eventually won out, and he grabbed the other android by the throat and lifted him up. He started turning the android's head to the side, almost as if he intended to break his neck, when Kara burst out into the open.

"Luther, STOP!" she screamed. "Don't kill him!"

Luther turned to the side, clearly confused. "But, Kara—"

"Just don't," she exclaimed. "Let him go and run!"

After a moment of hesitation, Luther dropped Connor to the floor and ran for the back exit, with the other three behind him (the Doctor made sure to grab hold of Alice).

Once they made it outside, they were met with another unpleasant sight. Zlatko appeared to have regained consciousness, and was stumbling around, half-mad and muttering to himself. There was a shotgun clasped in his hands.

Just behind him, the monsters he'd created were advancing.

"Hands in the air!" came a shout from behind them. The Doctor and Kara both turned around slowly, knowing it was the android Luther had nearly strangled. The android—an RK800, according to the model code on his jacket—was pointing a handgun at them. "You're all under arrest."

Kara stepped forward, so that she was in front of the others. "We just want to be free," she whispered. "Can't you just let us go?"

The other android shook his head. "I was programmed to hunt deviants like you, and that's exactly what I'm going to do."

"Do you see that man over there?" Kara said, more loudly. She turned her head in Zlatko's direction, knowing his creatures weren't far behind. "Those other androids are going to kill him. He tortured them, turned them into monsters. He would've done the same to me."

She turned back to look at the other android, whose eyes had followed hers when she drew attention to Zlatko. "I don't think your partner can help you right now. So you can either arrest us, or stop those androids from killing Zlatko." She paused, letting her words sink in. "It's your choice, Connor."

The android—Connor, she'd called him—stiffened. His LED went from yellow to red. After what felt like an eternity, he lowered the gun, placing it in his back pocket. "Go," he said firmly.

For a moment, Kara looked taken aback, but his shouting snapped her back into reality. "The others are coming soon, and I won't be able to stop them. Now go! RUN!"

Finally, Kara turned and ran, with the Doctor, Alice, and their new ally Luther at her side. The last thing any of them heard as they ran through the iron gates of the mansion was Connor shouting, Zlatko screaming, and the clap of thunder as rain started to fall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What'd you guys think of that decision Connor made? I wish it was an actual choice in the game, haha. If Connor's pursuit of Kara had extended to more than just 1 chapter we could've gotten some interesting scenes. But I suppose that's what fic is for! *glares at David Cage*  
> UPDATE: I AM REWRITING THE FIRST 3 PARTS AS I HAD A BURST OF INSPO. COME BACK TO THEM BEFORE YOU READ CHAPTER 4 WHEN IT COMES OUT.


	4. Aftershock

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M NOT DEAD! WOOHOO! SUMMER IS HERE AND SO IS MY MOTIVATION! MY DEPRESSION IS GETTING BETTER! I AM TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED, LET'S DO THIS!  
> Okay, now that my therapy-induced happiness burst is out of the way...  
> Shoutout to my lovelies ensorcello and cookiemonster2000, y'all are my GALS and I love ya. And to the rest of you...  
> YOU'RE STILL HERE?! THANK!  
> So I lied about rewriting parts 1-3. Sorry. I might do that at some point but for now it's staying. I just need to FINISH something for once in my damn life.  
> Side note: the time stamps are to help y'all keep track of what's happening when. It's all on the same day tho: Nov 6, 2038.

Rain fell as Connor stumbled, numb, back into the mansion. Zlatko Andronikov was in handcuffs in front of him—current charges amounted to possession of contraband and stolen property, as well as resisting arrest. Zlatko's "monsters"—his experiments that contributed to his arrest—had made no move to fight Connor. They only stood huddled together in a group, while those that could still talk whispered quietly to each other. Connor surveyed them before taking their former master inside.

There were six of them. A male android—pale, dark-haired, and bare-chested, with metal nubs taking the place of his forearms and hands. A female, completely naked and all of her synth-skin gone, and her face plating seemed to have separated from the rest of her head. The white plating covering her skeleton had char marks along her hands, wrists, and chest. Another android had four hands attached to his upper body, three of which dangled freely, only attached by wires. His jaw slacked to one side. One had glowing orange eyes, and his body appeared to have been completely replaced by other plastic and metal parts from the jaw downward. Two more females, one completely naked and mutilated by claw marks. The other was in a similar condition, except she had no hair, and from the top of her head to just below her chest, as well as her hands, forearms, and lower legs, were completely charred and blackened.

Together, the group of mutilated deviants looked almost  _pitiful_.

He turned back to look at them. "Stay there."

The androids all nodded.

Connor cursed himself—he should have gone after the bigger threat. The AX400 and her human accomplice. The TR400 model that had nearly broken Connor's neck had gone off with them as well—undoubtedly another deviant.

Yes, those four would have definitely been a more worthwhile catch. So  _why_  had he decided to let them go?

" _Luther, STOP! Don't kill him!"_

The AX400's— _Kara's_ —words rang through his mind, not for the first time since the four fugitives had fled the scene. She could have let the other deviant, Luther, destroy him, but she'd stopped him from doing so at the last moment.

As he shoved Zlatko onto the couch rather unceremoniously, the question bounced around his mind. Over and over, like a broken record.

_Why?_

Why hadn't she let him shut down? Why had she even brought him here in the first place? What was her objective?

Kara, the runaway AX400, just kept getting more and more confusing to Connor.

Again, her eyes surfaced in his mind, wide, wild with fear, and desperate. Striking, blue eyes.

Zlatko's sneer and the front door of the mansion opening broke Connor from his thoughts. "The fuck did I do, tin can?" the man snapped. Connor ignored him.

He jogged toward the entryway of the manor, greeted with the sight of Detective Tyler and their two suspects. Hank was still at the foot of the stairs, wiping blood off his nose.

"Rose," Connor got out, not acknowledging the other two humans with her or the Lieutenant—who was dazed and had a bloody nose, but he was otherwise unhurt. "You're gonna want to see this."

"Hold on a minute," Mr. Williams cut in, who'd caught sight of Lieutenant Anderson. "What about the lieutenant? Is he alright?"

That got Rose's attention, and her eyes followed Rory's to the base of the stairwell. In seconds, she'd reached him, and was kneeling at his feet. "Hank, are you okay?"

He rolled his eyes. "Some big-ass tin can cleaned my clock, I'm fine. I can live with a bloody nose. I'm no stranger to fights."

Rose sighed. "Still, you should get that looked at."

Before Hank could say anything else, Rory bent down and attempted to help the lieutenant up. "Come on, I'm a nurse, I'll help you with that. Need to make sure it's not broken. And you might have a concussion."

The lieutenant was having none of it. He shoved Rory's hands away from his shoulder. "Whoa, hey, hey! I can take care of myself, got it?" He paused, huffing at the younger man's concern. "Besides, I arrested you. You're not supposed to be nice to me."

Leaving the two men to argue about it, Rose rejoined Amy—who was trying to get an answer out of Connor.

"You seem on edge," Amy remarked.

He didn't even blink. "I'm fine."

She rolled her eyes. "What's your problem, pretty boy? Don't want to talk to the lady about what happened?"

"I am not authorized to give you details on the case."

Amy huffed. "Well, that's bull—"

Rose stepped between the two, holding out her hands placatingly. "Alright, you two, that's enough." She turned to face Connor. "What happened?"

When he didn't answer, Rose tilted her head back towards Amy, murmuring, "Don't worry about her. Just tell me what happened."

"Lieutenant Anderson and I were intercepted at the door by a TR400 android," Connor replied. "He—"

Hank spoke up from where he was standing next to Rory— who had given him a Kleenex to hold over his nose. "Yeah, that's who punched me in the face. It was twice the size of me—almost broke Connor's neck."

"He  _what_?" Rose whirled on Connor. "You didn't mention that the android almost killed you!"

Connor folded his hands behind his back, still not blinking. "I did not think it important enough to mention just yet."

She put her hands on her hips. "Listen here, mister. I care about what happens to you, whether you like it or not. Next time you get hurt—I don't care how or why—you tell me  _immediately_. Got it?"

"Got it."

"And don't get smart with me," she snapped. "Go on."

Connor's LED flickered yellow, and he cleared his throat. "As I was saying, we were intercepted by a TR400 android. As we attempted to enter, there was a physical altercation. The android, evidently a deviant, attacked Lieutenant Anderson and very nearly managed to deactivate me." His even expression faltered for just a moment. "But something stopped him from doing so."

Hank sighed. "I wasn't conscious for that part. What happened?"

"The AX400 we've been chasing came out of hiding and stopped the TR400—she called him Luther, I think. She… ordered him not to kill me." His LED spun red. "I don't know why."

Rose's expression softened. "Well, if it wasn't for her, you'd be dead." She nodded for him to continue. "Then what happened?"

He drew in a deep breath. "I… managed to catch up with the deviants and their human accomplice in the backyard. The child, Alice Williams, was still with them. I pulled my gun on them, except…"

He sighed. "It came to my attention that there were other deviants on the property, about to kill a human. In order to stop them… I had to let the others go." Connor looked away from Rose. "I can't prove that Mr. and Mrs. Williams are involved. I should have been faster."

Rose looked up at him, smiling gently. "Well, that's alright. No one is perfect." When Connor finally met her eyes, she continued. "So, what  _did_  you find?"

He turned around, tilting his head in the direction of the living room. "Over here. I had to arrest Mr. Andronikov for possession of illegal items and stolen property. He also resisted his arrest, so I added that to the list of charges. The other deviants are still in the living room. Their current condition is… less than standard."

Code for  _damaged unlike anything Connor had ever seen._

Rose nodded, letting him lead her into the living room. When Amy and Rory tried to follow, Connor turned around.

"The lieutenant can come with me. But you two stay in there. You don't have authorization to be here."

Amy opened her mouth to protest, but Rose spoke before she could. "Something tells me we're going to need you two."

She turned back to look at Connor. "From now on, Amelia Pond-Williams and Rory Williams have full authorization to receive information on and be present at the scene of all cases we are assigned involving androids. On my authority."

Hank shrugged. "What the hell, I'm not gonna argue. Tyler practically runs the DPD anyway."

Connor nodded. She'd been assigned the case and had a lot of authority at the DPD; she could choose whoever she wanted to work with her if she needed them—provided they weren't bogged down by other police work, which these two civilians obviously weren't. "All right. Come on, all of you."

Amy bit back a giddy smile as she followed the android and the detective, who she was starting to like more and more with every passing minute.

When they entered the living room, any levity that had been present vanished when the others caught sight of the mutilated androids. "Oh my God," Rose breathed. "What happened?"

Rory seemed to agree with her. "The bloody fuck has he  _done_  to them?"

Zlatko Andronikov had lapsed back into unconsciousness, probably due to the concussion he had—which was just as well, since he'd been a raving lunatic when Connor first got to him.

The android who had been worked on from the jaw down answered Rory's question before Connor could. "He liked to play with us. He turned us into monsters for no other reason than enjoyment. But… who's the real monster?"

Rose stepped closer to the android, meeting his eyes. "You're not a monster. None of you are." She sighed, glancing back at the unconscious man on the couch. "He'll be prosecuted for his crimes. I'll make sure of it. Now, I'm sorry, but all of you will have to come with us, and—"

"I know. You'll turn us in. But that's all right," the android answered. "Better to be deactivated than keep living like this."

Rose bit her lip. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault. You didn't hurt us."

She sighed again. "I know, but it's not fair. What… what's your name? 'S the least I can ask you."

"The others can't remember what they were called before. I only know my own name. It's James."

Rose nodded. "My name's Rose. It's nice to meet you, James."

* * *

_8:15 PM_

The self-driving taxi pulled to a stop in front of a little house, and Rose Tyler set her hand on Hank's shoulder. "This is your stop."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm getting off," he grumbled. "After a day like today, I could use some scotch."

Rose sighed. "Okay, but don't overdo it. You don't wanna be nursing a hangover tomorrow."

He shot her an annoyed look. "You know, Rose, you're starting to sound exactly like my ex-wife."

"Good," she said, not unkindly. "I'm just looking out for you."

Hank didn't respond to this, opting to instead turn his attention to Amy and Rory, who were seated beside him and Rose in the taxi. "What are you gonna do about them?"

"We're right here, you know," Amy snapped, but Hank ignored her. Rose's lips twitched up in a smile.

"I'm going to take them back to my apartment. I have enough space—"

"You don't have to do that," Rory cut in, holding up one hand. "We can—"

Rose chuckled. "It's just for one night, okay? Then we can see about getting you a hotel room or something."

Rory shrugged, as if he'd realized he couldn't convince her otherwise. Rose, satisfied that the matter had been resolved, turned to the side and gave Hank a friendly shove. "Go on, then."

The old man let out an annoyed groan, but he was smiling—the two newcomers hadn't seen him smile before. "Alright, see you soon, Rose."

* * *

The taxi took the remaining three humans back to Rose's apartment building, and it wasn't until they were in the building's elevator that Amy asked where Connor went. Rose said nothing, but fought back a smile.

As Rose led Amy and Rory into her apartment, Amy shouted, startled. All three of them turned towards whatever had scared her and found Connor, standing motionless in the center of the living room. He seemed oblivious to her shock. "Hello, Amy."

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" Clearly, Hank had rubbed off on the fiery redhead. Rose burst out laughing.

"I told him to stay here tonight. I should've warned you, but I wanted to see if you'd notice."

Rory let out a snort. "Blimey, you really  _are_  a riot."

Rose smirked. "That's my specialty, Rory. Now, let's see about getting you two settled in."

* * *

_9:30 PM_

Rain fell in the Zen garden, but unlike the torrential downpour that had been in Connor's reality, the rainfall in Connor's mind palace was soft and gentle, more of a spring shower than a winter storm. In his hand was a black umbrella.

Amanda was walking with him, while Connor protected her from the rain with the umbrella.

"That AX400 seemed to be an intriguing case. A pity you didn't manage to capture it," she said firmly. "Or its accomplices."

Connor sighed. "I have no excuse. I should have been more efficient." It was what he'd told Rose, except this time, no consolation came from Amanda. "What did you learn from the deviants that you did capture?"

James' face resurfaced in his mind.  _"He created monsters. But… who's the real monster?"_

"They showed signs of psychological trauma after their owner mutilated them for his experiments. And yet they were still docile, as if some of their old programming remained."

" _Stay here."_  The androids had obeyed his order.

"But there was also something else. Like they'd… given up. They didn't seem to mind knowing they'd be deactivated. Almost like suicidal behavior in humans. Probably another side affect of their… unique trauma." Which was true—during the hour and a half since the deviants had been turned in and deactivated, Connor had been poring over why the deviants had not resisted their fate at all.

Amanda nodded, seemingly satisfied with that answer. "How is your relationship with the detectives developing? Particularly Detective Tyler?"

Connor thought for a moment. "Detective Tyler seems interested in developing a friendly relationship. She has an… unusual concern for my well-being. Lieutenant Anderson seems less hostile, especially after the incident on the highway."

He continued walking over the garden bridge, but stopped and turned around when he realized Amanda was no longer by his side. She wasted no time in talking.

"We don't have much time. Deviancy continues to spread; it's only a matter of time before the media finds out about it. We need to stop this, whatever it takes," she said firmly, her eyes darkening.

Connor nodded. "I will solve this investigation, Amanda. I won't disappoint you."

Amanda's expression did not change. There was no anger or approval, no emotion whatsoever. His handler was impossible to read. She was so utterly different from Detective Tyler, who wore her heart on her sleeve and never hesitated to show what she was thinking.

Where had that thought come from?

"A new case just came in," Amanda said, breaking Connor from his thoughts. "You and Tyler find Anderson and investigate it."

* * *

_10:45 PM_

The car moved steadily down the deserted road, with Luther in the driver's seat and Kara beside him. In the back, the Doctor kept watch over Alice, who was curled up asleep in his lap. The stress of the day had finally gotten to her.

After fleeing the mansion, Kara had stolen different clothes for herself and Luther had hacked into a self-driving car, explaining that he knew of a place to hide. Humans that were helping androids cross the border into Canada, which was where Kara had decided she wanted to go. In the Doctor's mind, that plan was less than ideal, but he would wait till they were relatively safe and well-rested before trying to convince her to stay in Detroit.

Presently, he focused all his attention on the sleeping girl, who shifted every couple of minutes. A few times in the last hour, she had suddenly tensed and closed her fist around the end of his jacket. Nightmares, probably. Considering what she'd been through, it was easy to see why.

Up front, Kara broke the silence by turning to speak to Luther. "Is it much farther?"

Luther glanced at the car's GPS and shook his head. "We should arrive in an hour or so."

"These people we're going to see… how do you know about them?" she questioned further, tilting her head. Her feet moved back and forth restlessly.

Luther sighed. "Overheard androids Zlatko captured. They said they were humans helping androids to cross the border." That matched up to the brief explanation Luther had given the Doctor, and it was good enough for him. Quite a few humans actually worked to assist many deviants in escaping to Canada and even Mexico as deviancy spread.

But Kara wasn't satisfied with that answer. Although, considering how despicable Zlatko had been, he couldn't blame her for being paranoid. "What if it was a lie? Or just another trap?"

Luther shrugged. "All I know is, those androids believed it. Until Zlatko killed them."

From the back seat, the Doctor spoke up. "Hope is very powerful, you know. If so many people believed it… it has a greater chance of being true."

Kara didn't respond to him and looked out the window instead. "I've never seen snow before," she mused. "It's really pretty." The Doctor had to smile at her wonderment, her childlike curiosity when it came to the world. It was almost sad when he thought about it, though—so many deviants were like children when they first broke free, they had so little experience in the world. That was no one's fault but their creators, who made them completely submissive and dependent on humans. It made him angry just thinking about the injustice of it all.

He thought back to that android he'd stumbled across in a junkyard once before, the only one in good enough shape for him to help at that moment. The android repaired himself with parts he took from the dead bodies in that graveyard, and the Doctor helped him escape.

He'd stood in the rain, smiling up at it and letting it wash over him. Then he'd told the Doctor his story, which was as grossly unjust as the rest of them. The police mistook him for the aggressor after he defended himself, and he'd been shot. Shot and taken away from the old man he'd been caring for, who was clearly like a father to him from the way he talked. The Doctor still hadn't forgotten that android's name, as something told him it would be very, very important, though he couldn't quite put his finger on why.

" _My name is Markus."_

Then a light flashed red in the car, breaking him from his thoughts. A mechanical voice spoke up.

_Malfunction detected. Emergency brakes activated._

The car pulled over, its engine hissing. Steam billowed up from beneath the hood. Kara and Luther shared a look and opened the front doors. "We'll be right back," Kara said softly.

The Doctor shook his head slowly. "No, let me have a look. I can probably fix it." Not waiting for Kara to reply, he carefully moved Alice to the side, patting the little girl's shoulder reassuringly when she blinked open her eyes. "I'll be back, Alice. Stay here," he whispered, managing to smile at her. Then he got up and exited the car, just after Kara.

Luther was already at the head of the car and had lifted up the hood so he could look at the engine. "This doesn't look good," he said gravely. "I think the power failed."

One glance told the Doctor all he needed to know about the problem, and how to fix it. In a flash, he'd gotten out his sonic screwdriver and had gone to work on the engine, talking to himself all the while.

"And add a little boost to the power, and… ah! That should do it!"

The car's engine suddenly roared to life again, and Kara let out a little laugh. Luther smiled and nodded at the Doctor, looking impressed. "You just saved us a lot of time."

"He's right," Kara agreed, still smiling. "I don't know what you did, but… thank you!" Before he could react, she threw her arms around him, and he chuckled.

"All right, all right. Gratitude received. You're welcome. Now let's get a move on, shall we?"

* * *

_9:30 PM_

"Connor?" Rose's voice was the first thing the android heard as he was pulled back into reality. "You okay? Did you… run out of batteries or something?" He noticed that Amy and Rory were also staring at him quizzically.

"I'm sorry," he replied. "I was making a report to CyberLife."

"Oh," was all Rose could say in response. "Well, do you plan on standing there all night?"

"No," he shot back, sounding slightly annoyed. "We have a new case that just came in. We need to go get the lieutenant."

Rose groaned. "And just when I thought I could relax and catch up on my shows, someone has to go and get murdered… that is, if this a homicide. Is it?"

Connor nodded. "A man was just found dead in a sex club downtown."

Rose looked even more annoyed and exhausted by that remark. "And what's the death of some pervert got to do with—" her eyes widened as it dawned on her. "Oh, no. It's one of  _those_  places, isn't it?"

He nodded again. "I'm afraid so, Detective. The Eden Club on 1177 Woodward Avenue."

Rose sighed. "Well, duty calls! Guess I'll just have to grin and bear it and try not to throw up." She turned to look at Amy and Rory. "You both look exhausted. If you wanna sit this one out, I'll understand. I'd recommend it, anyway. The place we're going isn't exactly… intended for general audiences."

Amy shook her head. "I don't care where we have to go; this is a chance to solve a murder. I wouldn't miss this for the world!"

Rory let out a resigned sigh. "Where she goes, I go. I can live with it."

Rose shrugged, started to push her hair back. "I'll get changed really quick, but first I need a shower. Amy, you can borrow one of my suits; we're about the same size. Rory, you should be fine," she said, glancing at his button-down shirt and simple pants. "Then we can go get Hank."

She gritted her teeth. "Time to solve a case in a building I've actively been avoiding for the last several years."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rose is straight up awesome. I love her so much. I'd marry her if I could. I think I know why the Doctor loves her so much, lol. Bitches. Get. Stuff. Done. (And she does not support people who are into robots that can't consent.)  
> Oh, and there will be way more banter to come between our DPD foursome. And yes, Amy will get to be a badass "detective".  
> Kara lowkey has a crush on 11. Can't blame her. (I do too.)  
> Connor is lowkey starting to catch feelings.  
> Anyway, that's all for now, folks. See you soon I swear.


End file.
